Unit 1 & 2 Final - PPT (PPS)

Module: Public Policy Formulation and
Implementation
Instructor : Desta Mulugeta (MPM,MA)

Address: Cell phone- 0913422740
Email-ferhan2009@yahoo.com
Rm. 328 (Old Building )
Office hour: Tuesday 3:00PM-4:30PM
Thursday 3:00PM-4:30PM
Or by appointment
1
Course Requirements
No pre-requisites.
Textbooks:
 Birkland(2011),An Introduction to the Policy Process: Theories
,Concepts, and Models of Public Policy Making ,3 rd edition ,M.E Sharp,
Inc.
 Howlett and Ramesh (2003) , Studying Public Policy: Policy Cycles and
Policy Subsystems ,2nd edition ,Oxford University Press
 Wu,et,al.,(2010),The Public Policy Primer :Managing the policy process,

Published by Routledge ,
Assessment
 Test 1 20%
 Individual assignment 15%
 Group Assignment 25%
 Final Examination 40%
2
 Total 100%
UNIT ONE
Public Policy : Concepts and

Rationales
3
Unit Learning Outcomes
Up on the completion of this unit, you will be able to:
 Describe the concepts of public policy;
 Explain the underlying reasons for policy to be in place; and
 Understand the role of citizens in the policy process
Understand origin of public policy
Differentiate what make Policy, public policy

Conceptual Framework and Rationales of
Public Policy
1.1 Public Policy: What does it means
 The term “policy” comes from the Greek, Sanskrit, and Latin
languages:
 The Greek “polis” (city-state) and Sanskrit “pur” (city) evolved
into the Latin “politia” (state) and later, into the Middle English
“policie”, which referred to the conduct of public affairs or the
administration of government.
 The etymological origins of policy are the same for two other
important words: police and politics.
Public Policy: What does it means Cont…
 This created somewhat porous-leaky boundaries among the
disciplines of political science, public administration, and policy
analysis, all of which study politics and policy (William N. Dunn
2004, 34).
 Policy from politics point of view is “ the basic principles by
which Government is guided” (Business dictionary).
 According to Cambridge English dictionaries Policy is “a set of
ideas or a plan of what to do in particular situations that has
been agreed officially by group of people, business organization,
Government or political party”.
 Having an encompassing and a working definition of public policy
is not easy;
 For many people, defining public policy is considered as defining
their own roles in the policy making process and the organizations
they work for.
Sample Public policy definitions:
 Policy is made in the “public’s” name.
 Policy is made or initiated by government.
 Policy is interpreted by public and private actors.
 Policy is what the government intends to do.
 Policy is also what the government chooses not to do (Birkland
2001, 20).
 Policy is the mechanism by which government has direct contact
with its citizens (Anderson, 2006, 80).

For others, public policy is defined as follows:
 It is “the actions of government and the intentions that

determine those actions” (Clarke E. Cochran et al. 1993).
 “Public policy is the outcome of struggle in government over
who gets what” (Ibid).
 Policy is “whatever governments choose to do or not to do”
(Thomas Dye 2005).
 “Public policy consists of political decisions for implementing
programs to achieve societal goals” (Cochran and Malone, 1999).
 Stated most simply, public policy is “the sum of government
activities, whether acting directly or through agents, as it has an

influence on the life of citizens” (B. Guy Peter 1999). i.e. “What
the government is acting on our behalf, chooses to do or not to do”
(Dye, 2005).
 Public policy is “a set of interrelated decisions taken by a political
actor or group of actors concerning the selection of goals and

the means of achieving them within a specified situation where
those decisions should ,in principle, be within the power of those
actors to achieve.” ( Jenkins ,1978)
 “A policy is a purposive course of action followed by an actor or
set of actors in dealing with a problem or matter of concern”
(Anderson ,1984:3). That means, it is an intentional course of
actions followed by a government institution or an official for
resolving issue of public concerns.
 “A policy is a statement by government of what it intends to do
or not to do, such as a law, regulation, ruling, decision, or order, or
a combination of these.” (Birkland,2011)
 Generally public policy is the study of government decisions and
actions to deal with social problems, whose

manifestations/expressions are:
Laws
Orders
Public statements
Official regulations
Or widely accepted and publicly visible patterns of behavior

 The driving forces for public policies are scarcity and rational
self-interest. i.e. while available resources are limited, human

wants are limitless.
 The combination (limited resources and limitless wants) force us
to choose among the goods and services produced in certain

quantities.
 This also forces governments to intervene in the distribution of
some goods and services to be in the interest of the public.

 Implications (some key attributes of public policy)
1. Responses to policy demands-some sort of problem that requires

attention.
2. Goal and result oriented, to achieve long-term purpose
3. Public policy is based on law and is authoritative.
4. Without enforcement, a policy loses its meaning.
5. Policy is ultimately made by government
6. Policy is also what government chooses to do or not to do
7. Policy making is not only about solving problems, but about how
groups are formed to achieve public purposes.
 PP is set of decisions and is breeder concept than the applied
problem-solving
 PP is what Governments actually do and what subsequently
happens
 Public policy may be either positive or negative in form
 Public policies are the domain of state or Gov’t
 Policy formulation is the duty of politicians
 Public policies result from three flows – problems, solutions and
political choices
 Policy issues can be divided into two categories: those already on
the public policy agenda, and those that are not

 Gerston (1997) suggests that an issue will appear and remain on
the public policy agenda when it meets one or more of three

criteria.
 sufficient scope, intensity and time
• Policy response to public issues/agenda can be reactive or
proactive.
 The two concepts involved in any policy that need to be
distinguished are:
 Policy statements are formal expressions of public policy
(legislative statutes, executive orders, administrative rules and
regulations, court opinions, etc); and
 Policy outputs are actions actually taken in pursuance of policy
decisions and statements (taxes collected, highways built, welfare

benefits paid, traffic fines collected, foreign-aid projects
undertaken; etc).
1.2 The Why of public policy study (Rationales)
In the course of their daily lives, people are affected, directly and
indirectly by an extensive array of public policies.
 In the modern and complex society public policies are ubiquitous-
everywhere and we face many advantages and disadvantages,

pleasure and irritation or pain.
 Individually and collectively, people have important consequences
for their well-being and happiness (Anderson 2006, 1).

 In modern world government regulates almost everything we see,
breathe, touch, use, ride, inject, or ingest, from our birth to our
death (Gupta 2001, 1).
The Why of public policy study (Rationales) Cont…
o Government sets air and water quality standards, criteria for serving
food and administering drugs.

o It levies taxes, circulates currency, makes education policy, and
resolves questions of personal welfare.

o It tries to protect us by keeping law and order. It also maintains a
military to keep us safe from attack.

o It passes laws affecting the most personal aspects of our lives,
including laws regulating sexual behavior
o Others
 In consequence, it would be difficult, if not impossible, to list all the
government regulations and standards to which we must adhere in

our daily lives (Ibid, p.2).
Governments also:
 regulate conflict within society;
 organize society to carry on conflicts with other societies;
 distribute a great variety of symbolic rewards and material services
to members of the society; and

 extract money from society (taxes).
Hence, public policies are instruments to:
 Regulate behavior, organize bureaucracies, distribute benefits, or
extract taxes-or all of these at once.

 One of the important tasks of public policy is to improve
Governance (Good Governance).

 In its wider perspective, the purposes or rationales of studing PP are
categorized as:
 Theoretical/professional/practical, and
 Political reasons
1) Theoretical/professional/practical
 PP study helps citizens, interest groups, individuals in their
conscious political participation and making of their choices.
 It sharpens citizens’ analytic skills in order to decide what political
positions and policies to support, to evaluate the extent of democracy
and good governance, develop the ability to influence policy
decisions, etc.
 Citizens have good reason to develop policy knowledge and skills as
it affects their life whether in their career life through the professions,
programs, institutions, etc.
 Citizens are also required to know and comply with public policies as
failure to comply with them exposes to unlikely consequences.

 Policy decisions affect citizens’ age, profession, points of view,
decisions and choices.

 Political scientists are also concerned with how PP is related to:
 structure of political parties,
 their group interests,
 interparty competitions,
 the electoral systems and
 the executive-legislative relations.

 Academics want to examine/assess the:
 general understanding of the public,
 policymaking processes,
 causes and consequences of public policy vis-à-vis-in relation to
what governments ought to do.

 As citizens, we are also required to know something about public
policies, i.e. how they are budgeted, implemented, and evaluated.

 Government agencies need to have policy think-tanks-who can
examine (analyze) public problems and provide policy alternatives
 Thus, policy analysts need to understand the interests and
aspirations of all groups to come to policy formulation.
2) Political Reasons
o Politically, the study of public policy helps policy makers to
make intelligent choices.

o Knowledge of public policy helps politicians to understand issues
over which debates and controversies occur.

o The study of public policy requires “the use of reason and evidence
to choose the best policy among a number of alternatives” (Mac

Rae et al. 1979,4).
o To Anderson (2006), policy making process is political process that
involves conflict and struggle among people (public officials and

private citizens) with conflicting interests, values, and desires
o Policy goals and objectives such as citizens’ education, public
health, etc. are determined in the political process.

o It is impossible to separate policy studies from the political
processes in which they are embedded. It is also believed that

any public policy advances certain political values,
 The difference between politics and public policy is that:
 the study of politics is the attempt to explain the ways in which
power is exercised and how that power is used to allocate resources

and benefits to some people/groups and costs and burdens to other
(Birkland 2001, 5).
 The study of public policy is the examination of the creation, by
the government, of the rules, laws, goals, and standards that

determine what government does or does not do to create resources,
benefits, costs and burdens (Ibid).
 In a nutshell, the rationales for studying PP, among others are:
 Policy affects one’s life as a member of the public /society,
 Social problems often needs collective decision making,
 Political reasons /who make what decision,
 Theoretical or professional /scientific reasons,
 Once again, as individual citizens, academics, professionals, and
politicians generally, the study of public policy requires “the use of

reason and evidence to choose the best policy among a number
of alternatives”
27
How to make the study of PP relevant and useful?
 One essential problem that the academics must address is bridging
the gap between the academics and practitioners.

 Citizens have to be empowered to use what have been learned to
make better policy, or better arguments in favor of a particular policy

option.
28
1.3 The Field of public policy (Historical Perspective)
Origin of Public policy and Political science
o Scholars argue that public policy emerged from political
science; it is argued to be a 20th century creation (dating back to
around 1922).
o Other scholars hold that the study of public policy is only 50 years
beginning with Harold Lasswell’s (1958) call for the
development of a distinctive policy science.
o According to the political scientist Charles Merriam, it was

necessary to relate or connect the theory and practice of politics
to understsnding the actual acts of government, that is, public
policy.
The Field of public policy (Historical Perspective)Cont…
 Public policy making can be treated as a science (policy
science)-basically social science, in which scientific method can
be employed in its study.
 Though the study of public policy is different from the study of
“natural” or “hard” sciences, the method used can be scientific

and rigorous to produce or test important hypotheses and allow
these ideas to be tested and refined.
The Field of public policy (Historical Perspective) Cont…
 PP is vast and multidisciplinary subject whose main areas are

political science, sociology and economics. However, with new
emerging social issues and concerns, there are now several
disciplines that are drawing the attention of public policy makers
and are assuming the field of public policy studies.
 So, due to its multidisciplinary nature, PP is perceived in different
ways:
 Some students of public policy focus on the political, cultural,
and judicial contexts in which policies are made.

 Others study how policies are adopted (policy making science). For
instance:
Political scientists are interested in the interaction in the policy process
between the political system and interest groups.
Scholars with the backgrounds in public administration study the role of
the bureaucracy in public policy.
Economists, on their part, concern themselves primarily with the
effectiveness and efficiency of policies, while
Operations researchers examine the management policies that promote
efficient delivery of services in public organizations.

 Therefore, the reliance of PP on a broad range of social sciences
such as political science, sociology, economics, public

administration, etc. is the major fascinating or perplexing element
in studying and teaching public policy.
 According to Birkland(2011), the relationship between such
disciplines and public policy is explained as follows:
 Political science: the study of the processes by which societies seek
to allocate political power and the benefits of such power.

 Relationship to Public Policy: is in the political process through
which policies are made and enforced.

 Economics: The study of the allocation of resources in a community.
Economists study markets and exchanges. Welfare economists seek to

understand the extent to which an overall community’s welfare can be
maximized.
 Relationship to Public Policy: There are many economic factors that
influence public policy, such as economic growth, productivity,

employment, and the like.
 Sociology: is the study of social life, social change, and the social causes
and consequences of human behavior. Sociologists investigate the

structure of groups, organizations, and societies, and how people interact
34 within these contexts.”
 Relationship to Public Policy: Community and group activities are an
important part of policy making, because groups of people often form

to make demands.
Public administration: The study of the management of government
and nonprofit organizations, including the management of information,

money, and personnel in order to achieve goals.
 Relationship to Public Policy: The management of public programs is
an integral part of the policy process. PA scholars study the motivation

of program implementers and targets and help research innovations to
improve service delivery.
Implication
 The interdisciplinary nature of PP has both strength and
weakness.
 Strength, because the discipline draws upon the best insights from
natural sciences, social sciences and humanities.

 Weakness, because not having a distinct discipline, students of
public policy often study and discuss the subject in terms of their
own training and their discipline’s language, not necessarily in
terms of a shared language in policy studies.
36
1.4 What makes public policy “public”?
 Classical liberalism advances the view that the notions of
separation of power and federalism in governance process is
determined in the constitution of nation-states. i.e. classical
liberalism is the dominant ideological foundation of a given
nation’s constitutional system (e.g. separation of power and
federalism).
 Among the many beliefs of liberalism is the belief that power

derives from the consent of the governed, and that “we the
people” are the governed who provide our consent to the
government (Birkland p. 21).
 Social contractarians such as Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau and others

believe that government should be founded upon the choices
and consent of the people.
What makes public policy “public”? Cont…
o Social contractarian scholars believe that people form their
government to remedy the social ills confronting them.
o Government action is therefore legitimate only when the public
consents to it.
o Government power is yoked to the needs and preferences of individuals
and groups, regardless of their wealth, social status, or title (Ibid).

o Furthermore, public policy got its adjective (public) from the view
point that it’s made on behalf of a public by means of a public law

or regulation that is put into practice or effect by public institution or
administration (Cochran and Malone 1999).
When policy advocates seek to induce the government to make the
policy (taking an action or refusing to do so), proponents of the new

policy will claim that the government does so in the “public interest”.
There are, however, controversies as there is disagreement over what
constitutes “the public interest”. For instance, some policy advocates

claim that laws that relieve tax burdens on the rich are in the public
interest because they create overall public wealth. On the other hand,
those who argue that the rich should be taxed at a higher rate than
the poor claim that taxation based on ability to pay is more in the
spirit of the public interest.
 The bottom line, however, is the fact that public policy is
directly and indirectly related to public interests as it in

some way affects all.
 The different interests or arguments reflected to define in
a universal agreed-upon public interest makes it difficult to

come up with a given public policy to be in place.
 This also contributes to the expediency or restraint of
various policies at any point in time.

1.5 Past Models of Policymaking
o In the early years of nation-states history, administration and
politics were inseparable, where elected politicians hired their own

supporters to fill administrative positions.
o As governments grew more complex, untrained professionals
drew criticism for mismanagement and corruption, prompting a
public call for change.
o Gradually, reforms in the civil service came about by instituting
merit-based selection procedures at various levels of government

administrations.
Past Models of Policymaking Cont…
 And there was quest for the strict separation between elected
officials and nonelected bureaucrats.
a) A perfect dichotomy between the two groups: elected officials
defined policy objectives while public agencies and

administrators performed (implemented) purely technical and
professional functions.
 Policy makers did not interfere in administration, and administrators
did not get involved in policy making
42
b) Coequal arrangement
 Figure (b) bellow, illustrates the coequal model: a vertical line
divides the policy-administration sphere into two equal domains.

 The tumultuous period in the US’s history in the 1960s fostered a
strong distrust of elected officials

 Owing to this, young academics founded the “New Public
Administration” as a school of policy analysis

 The group questioned the loyalty of administrators to their
political bosses
43
 The group advocated a nonhierarchical, coequal arrangement
in which administrators were loyal not to the hierarchy but to

their ethical principles:
 that is their belief in the equality of policy makers and
administrators and their commitment to protecting the rights of

the powerless (Gupta ,19)
 The young academics admitted that such direct contact might
sometimes conflict with the policies of elected representatives.

(a) Policy-Administration Dichotomy (b) Coequal
Policy (legislators)
Policy (legislators)
Administration (Implementers) Administration (Implementers)
45
c) A mixture-in-administration model
 Figure ‘c’ below shows that elected officials prevent
nonelected administrators from gaining too much authority in a

democracy by encroaching on the domains of administrators.
d) A mixture-in-policy model
 Figure ‘d’ describes the increasing role of bureaucracy in public
policy making.
 According to Gupta (2001), three developments fostered this rapid
encroachment by nonelected policy analysts and executives,
46
particularly in local government:
 the demand for increased public service (e.g. crime control,
education, health care, infrastructure, drug abuse, poverty and

environmental protection) challenged city governments to deal
with such a wide variety of issues;
 the great Depression and Keynesian economics that urges
government involvement; and

 rapid advances in technology which also required government
regulation.
o(c) Mixture in Administration (d) Mixture in policy
Policy Policy
Administration
Administration
Source: Based on James H. Svara (1995) as in Gupta (2001, 4)
48
Questions for group work & reflection
 How do you evaluate the practice of policy making and

implementation in Ethiopia in line with the above models ?
 What do you suggest regarding the relationship between the two
players for the successful implementation of public policy?
49
Questions for reflection, group work & research
1. Differentiate the concepts of policy, public policy, and policy
management. What about the concepts of strategy and policy?
2. Distinguish the concepts of laws, regulations, orders, and
policy
3. Explain the relationships among public policy process / policy
formulation & implementation/, public policy analysis & public
policy research
4. Why do people need public policy/ what are rationales?
5. Why do we study public policy as citizen?
6. Outline the relationships between public administration and
public policy
7. Review the historical development of public policy
8. Research the roles and challenges of public managers in policy
50
making process
Unit TWO
FOUNDATIONS AND CONTEXTS OF

PUBLIC POLICY
Unit Learning Outcomes
Up on completion of this unit, students should be able to:
 Examine foundations on which public policies are based.
 Appreciate the context of public policy making
 Explain the rationales for government intervention through policy
making
 Describe public institution and policy capacity
 Elaborate public opinion and policy making

Questions for reflection and group work
 How do constitutional and ideological foundations influence
public policy ?
 What does it mean when we say the environmental factors help
shape public policy ? What are the environmental factors in this

context?
 Explain socio-economic conditions determining policy formulation
& implementation
 Briefly explain the determinants and types of political culture
53
Questions for reflection and group work Cont…
What are the strengths and weakness of the policy provisions
of Ethiopian Constitution in the context of policy making?

Report the structural and historical contexts of policy making
in Ethiopia (namely constitution/government structure,

economic variables, socio-cultural conditions, the
size of government, political culture, geographic & global
and technological issues ,etc.)
2.1 Foundations of Public Policy
 Government does not make public policies in a vacuum, but in
most cases in the existing nation’s norms, values, culture, history,

traditions, constitution, and technological sophistication.
 Foundations form contexts upon which public policies are to be
analyzed, formulated, implemented, and evaluated.

 Successful actors understand the enduring features of policy –
making environment and the ways in which the environment can

change to enhance or retard policy change.
 Includes constitutional setting, separation of powers and federalism,
ideological base, politics and pace of policy endorsement and

policy restraint tradition.
Foundations of Public Policy Cont…
1. Constitution
 It is one of the major determining foundations or factors that
influences public policy.

 A country’s constitution is not only governing social, economic,
cultural and political life of citizens, but it also provides and

sanctions the rights of the same.
 Constitution may expand or constrain the power that citizens,
groups, government and their agencies should exercise.

 Constitution envisages the structure of governance, mode of
power sharing among government branches (the executive,

legislative and judicial) and structures (federal, state, local
government levels).
 The relationships between government branches determine how
often and how fast policy issues are identified, set into agenda,
deliberated and brought to adoption
 Public policies are the product of what constitution envisages for
citizens, groups and the larger public to be translated into actions.

2. Separations of power and federalism

o Many democratic states have distinct separation of powers in
which governing power is shared among the legislatives,

executives and the judiciary.
o This is done in fear of the fact that unrestrained government
authority could abuse citizen’s rights.

o Such arrangement maintains the checks and balance of power,
where no branch of government would have enough power to

threaten liberty. It’s a means of preventing tyranny.
o Sometimes, however, checks and balance may lead to what is
known as “policy restraint” or policy delays which equally

manifests itself as both benefits and losses.
E.g.
 In presidential governance, the president can veto policy decisions
made by the legislature, unless a 2/3 each body of Congress from

the two Houses steps in to override or reverse the veto.
 Even if the president and the congress agree, the supreme court
can exercise what is known as the power of judicial review to

declare it either a law or unconstitutional.
 Thus, separation of power presupposes that there are multiple policy
venues at each governing government structures.
Federalism (Center-State/local power sharing)
 Policies developed at the center or state levels matter as they influence
beneficiaries at both levels differently.
 When developed at the center, public policies have to be acceptable by the
majority of Parliamentarians/Congress/ and the top official of the
government to ensure their compatibility with state or local demands and
situations.
 In the separation of power between the center and the states,
states may sometimes disagree with the federal government,

where a likely delay of policy implementation is in accordance.
 However, such “strategic delays” in implementing federal
mandates or policies is considered to shaping the policy. This is

considered one area of the strength of federalism.
 But at all levels, there is a need to find a common ground
between and among policy actors to facilitate the policy making

processes.
 The primary benefit of federalism is that it contains/prevents/
policy fads of fast-moving popular movements in one or a few

states, thus preventing the growth or expansion of conflict to the
national level.
 This presupposes that a responsive government which counts on
deliberation (long period of thinking, discussing, and debating

issues) is good and that policies should not made hastily.
 This is believed to be advantageous as it fosters innovations and
induces states to improve their capacity to address problems

that federal government does not address.
 Policy restraints or delays are more important for states and local
governments to make sure that policies designed are within their accords and
even to the benefit of the entire nation.
 Such creative initiatives by states shape policies and states are considered as
“laboratories of democracy”.
 In many federal countries, states share governing responsibilities with
federal entities, while at other times such responsibilities also overlap.

 In general, constitutional design that gives chance for deliberative
government, government that takes time to consider the various aspects and
affected interests in any legislation, is very essential to make policy that is of
63majority’s consent.
3. Ideological
 The ideological basis on which countries operate affects the type and
expediency of public policies.

 Where stable ideology is not experienced, policies are merely
frequented without noticing their impacts.

 In the absence of strong ideological underpinnings, individuals and
groups take every weak opportunity to threaten unwarranted

change of policies.
 Hence, the nature of ideological stance may/may not allow quick shift
of policies.
 For fear of unwarranted policy change, it is believed that certain
ideological and constitutional pillars have to be maintained to
reign/prevail regardless of issues that surface at any point in time.
 Issues such as constitutional provisions on belief, liberty, equality
of citizens, voting rights, etc. which are core beliefs and
constitutional rights have to be durable, adaptable to new
problems and conditions, and rarely threatened by those who
seek policy change.

 For example, in Ethiopia, it can be said that Constitutional
cores such as the sovereignty of the people, federal
governance, the rights of nations, nationalities and peoples,
the rights to religion, etc. are important ideological pillars,
which are barely negotiated
According to Marx ‘the ideology of the dominant group is
the dominant ideology of the society’.. Do you agree ?

4. Political: What really is politics?
 The relationship between politics and public policy is a matter of
debate such as the chicken and egg. Many, however, believe that
public policy is the “creation” of politics.
 Politics is the process by which government structures and
authorities are established and maintained and also how public
policies are formulated and adopted.
 According to Harold Lasswell (1958), politics is about “who gets,
What, when, and how”.

 Politics is also about power and influence in society and also the
process of policy making.

 “Power”, on the other hand, is the “ability to influence others
more than they influence you” (Clemons & McBeth 2001, 16).
 Politics is concerned with who participates in and who shapes
the decisions that governments make; who gains and who loses
as a result (Kraft and Furlong 2004, 6).
 As a result, the precise relationship of politics to public policy may
not always be clear. Without doubt, however, it is believed that

electoral politics is a major component of the policy making
process.
o Many believe that politics exerts strong influence on policy making in
part because elected officials anticipate how policy statements and
actions might affect their chances of reelection (Kraft and Furlong: 6).
o Thus, policy makers are more sensitive to the views of the groups and
individuals who helped them win the office in the first place and whose
support may be essential to keeping them there.
o Such political incentives motivate public officials to pay particular
attention to the policy preferences of their core constituencies and it is
one means of addressing their constituencies’ interest.

5. Policy endorsement and policy restraint traditions
Quick policy design or restraints traditions emanate from the founding of nation-states

which is considered as political norms and working practices of them.
Government structures (federal-local) and government branches play significant roles to


endorse, restrain or change public policies abruptly or much slower than imagined.
In some democratic countries like US, ideological and political stability prevents sudden
shifts in ideas or hasty adoption of policy fads as the founders of the countries designed the
system this way (Birkland 2001, 44).

 Their Constitutional design provides for deliberative
government, a government that takes the time to consider the

various aspects and affected interests in any legislation.
 The Courts also provide another restraint against popular passions
or the tyranny of the majority.
 The moral of the story is that all of the above foundations result in
considerable policy moderation or restraint that is an essential

part of the democratic political stability
2.2 Contexts of Public policy
 Public policy decisions are not made in a vacuum,
 They are made within a nation’s contexts (Environment)
 Policy environment is “the aggregate of all conditions, events

and influences that surround and affect or affected by it”(Kazmi,
2002)
 It is complex, multifaceted, dynamic & has far-reaching impact
 The context determine for problem to be considered as an
agenda, to choose best policy alternative, and to take feasible

actions, and the type and content of the policy in general
1. Socio- cultural environment
This consists of factors related to human relationship within a
society; deals with forms, development and functions of such a
relationship; and concerned with learnt and shared behavior of
groups of human beings which have a bearing on policy making .
Some of the important factors and influences operating in the
social environment are:
 Demographic Characteristics (composition and distribution of
population) - such as age, race, ethnicity, gender, inter-state
73 migration and rural-urban mobility and other attributes.

Socio- cultural environment Cont..,
 Role and position of men, women, children, adolescents, and the aged
 Socio-cultural norms and values- such as expectation of society

from government, attitudes, social customs, beliefs, rituals and
practices,
 Issues such as diversity, urbanization, inner city crime rates, and
immigration, population changes, birth rates, housing issues,

affirmative issues, child care, etc. influence the type and scope of a
public policy
 Religion, family, and other institutions- structure and changes
74Educational levels- awareness and consciousness of rights.


 The work ethic of the members of society, and the attitude towards
minority and disadvantaged groups.
 Socio-cultural concerns such as corruption & renting seeking , use
of mass media’s cultural influence, crime and violence, losing

cultural values , etc.
 Widely held values, beliefs, and attitudes, such as trust and
confidence in government and the political process, or lack of it,
 Deeply held cultural attitudes towards or against a given

issue/problem (e.g. abortion, women’s rights, family planning, etc),
75 religion affect policy and vise versa

***Policy implications of socio-cultural changes
 Housing (private home), labor force trends, etc.
 Health challenges or issues such as TB, malaria, HIV/AIDS,
maternal and child mortality

 Abortion, women’s rights, family planning,
 Social security policies
 Income disparity among social groups
 Issues of affirmative action: to what extent should governments
intervene to guarantee equality of opportunity and pay?

 Citizens’ relations in their communities
 Growth of two-income families and having both parents to have
full jobs
 Child care (should government help parents pay for it? Or,
should government regulate day care centers to ensure quality?)

 Increase of women in the work place (in different professions
and positions previously held by men)

 Other policy issues
2. Economic environment
 The economic environment consists of factors related to the
means of production and distribution of wealth, i.e. the
economy affects development policies and programs
 Some of the important factors and influences operating in the
economic environment are:

 The economic stage of a country at a given point in time
 The economic structure adopted- capitalistic, socialistic or mixed
 Infrastructural factors such as financial institutions, banks,
modes of transportation, communication facilities and so on.

78
Economic environment Cont…
 Economic indices like national income, rate and growth of GNP,
distribution of income, per capital income, disposable personal
income, rate of savings and investments, value of exports and
imports, the balance of payments, etc.
 Generally, the economic environment including the growth of
the economy, distribution of wealth, size and composition of
industry sectors, rate and growth of the economy, inflation,
79 employment rate, cost of labor and raw material

Economic environment Cont…
***Policy implications
 Economic planning such as, five-years plans, annual
budgets, and soon on
 Economic policies, such as monetary, fiscal and
income policies
 These policies may also in turn lead to economic
problems like national debt, budget deficit, trade
deficit, inflation, unemployment, etc.
80
3. Political context
 it is impossible to understand public policy without considering
the prevailing politics, which affects policy choices at every step.

 These are the views and positions of parties/and society on the
role of government’s and legitimacy to intervene or

influence the conduct of public programs and activities
political environment include:
 Political system and its features like nature of the political
system, ideological forces, political parties and centers of power

81
Political context Cont…
 The political structure- its goals and stability
 Political processes like operation of the party system,
elections, funding of elections, and legislation with respect to

economic, socio-cultural, environmental promotion and
regulation.
 The underlying characteristics of political environment in a
society may depend upon a number of factors:

 Widely held values, beliefs and attitudes on what governments
should try to do, how they should operate, and relationships
82 between the citizen and government
 Social norms and values: individual freedom, equality,

progress, efficiency, practicality, democracy, individualism,
private property, humanitarianism
 Spectrum of ideological differences within a nation may reflect
degree of conflict that may exist in society (Ex. Idea of equality)
 Within a society, variations among regions and groups may
result in distinctive subcultures. (Ex. North and South, Black
and White, Young and Old)
 Time-orientation of people: their view on relative importance
of past, present, and future has implications for policy formation
83
 Attitude of people: being passive (either unaware or not

interested) and active has implications for policy formation, i.e.
political culture of society
 Differences in public policy and policy making in various
countries can be accounted for at least partially by variations in

political culture: Parochial political culture, subject political
culture& Participant political culture
84
Types of political culture
1. Parochial political culture

 Citizens have little awareness or orientation toward either
the political system as a whole, the input process, the output
process, or the citizen as a political participant. (Expect
nothing from the system.)
 Implications for policy formation: Citizen participation in
policy formation is essentially, but it is non-existent, because
government matters little to most citizens.
85
Types of political culture Cont…
2. Subject political culture

 Citizens are oriented toward the political system and the
output process, yet has little awareness of input processes or
of the individual as a participant.
 Citizens are aware of governmental authority and may like or
dislike it, but is essentially passive.
 Implications for policy formation: individuals may believe
that they can do little to influence public policy, whether they
like it or not. This belief may lead to passive acceptance of
86
governmental action that may be authoritarian in style
• In some instances, frustration and resentment may build until
redress or change is sought through violence.
3. Participant political culture

• Citizens have a comparatively high level of political awareness
and information along with explicit orientations toward the

political system as a whole, its input and output processes, and
meaningful citizen participation in politics.
• They also understand how individuals and groups can influence
decision-making.
87
• Implications for policy formation: Individuals may organize
themselves into groups and seek to influence governmental action

to rectify their grievances. Government and public policy are
thus viewed as controllable by citizens. Most demands will be
made on government compared to other. political culture
88
4. Technological context
 Consists of those factors that are related to the knowledge
applied and the materials and machines used in the

production of goods and services
technological environment are as follows:
 Sources of technology like organization sources, external
sources, and foreign sources; cost of technology acquisition;

collaboration in and transfer of technology.
89
Technological context Cont…
 Technological development, stages of development, changes and
rate of change of technology, and research and development.

 Impacts of technology on human beings, the man-machines
system, and the environmental effects of technology

 Communication and infrastructure technology in management
90
5. Global/international environment
 The international/global environment consists of all those factors
that operate at the transnational, cross-cultural, and
across-the-border level which have an impact on national policy
i.e. Globalization, its process, content, and direction.

international environment are:

 Global economic forces, organizations, blocs, and forums
 Global trade and commerce, its process and trends
 Geopolitical situation, equations, alliances, and strategic
interests of nations
91
Global/international environment Cont…
 Global financial system, sources of financing, etc.
 Global demographic patterns and shifts.
 Global human resource-, availability, nature and quality of skills
and expertise, mobility of labor and other skilled personnel

 Global information systems communication networks and
media
 Global markets and competitiveness
 Global legal system-adjudication and arbitration mechanisms
 Globalization of management and allied disciplines, and the
92 diffusion of management techniques in industry.

Reading Assignment
Please visit Chapter Ten ( Article 85-92) of FDRE Constitution
which is entitled as “National Policy Principles and Objectives”
and review:
 Objectives of “National Policy Principles and Objectives”
 Principles for External Relations(Article 86 )
 Principles for National Defence (Article 87 )
 Political Objectives (Article 88 )
 Economic Objectives (Article 89 )
 Social objectives (Article 90)
 Cultural Objectives (Article 91)
93 Environmental Objectives (Article 92 )

Why Government Intervention
Government Interventions in Social and Economic Fronts
1. Political reasons: like rise of social movement pressing for
action. E.g. Adopting new policies to prevent discrimination
against minorities, civil rights, environmental issues, price of
goods and services, etc.
2. Moral or ethical reasons: when government action is seen as the

right thing to do even without symbolic pressure. This is done
through groups who can lobby policy makers or contact them
directly. E.g.
 government intervention for the social security program
 Providing farm subsidy to protect farmers from bankruptcy

Government Interventions in Social and Economic Fronts Cont…
3. Economic and Market failure reason
government intervention becomes logical and necessary when
private market is not efficient, i.e. when there is market

failure due to:
a) Monopoly and oligopolies-when one or several persons or
companies dominate the market and can control the price of a
product and service
b) Failure to provide public goods- public goods are goods and
services supplied to every one even if he/ she refuses to pay. So,
market can’t provide public goods because they have the
characteristics of:
 Non –excludability: All individuals have the right to use public
goods with out any exclusion.

 Non-rivalry: No additional cost incurred or no decline in
benefits due to addition of other individuals. E.g. National

defense
 Public goods are provided to maximize the welfare of a society but
private goods are to maximize profit.

 Public goods are provided in group but private goods are provided
individually for which private property rights are established.

 So, market can not provide public goods because their costs exceed
their values to any single buyer.
Condition No joint consumption Joint consumption
Exclusion is 1. pure private goods 2. Toll goods (jointly

feasible e.g. DVD players, consumed goods
automobiles, Houses, etc
Exclusion is 3. Common pool resources 4. Pure public goods

not feasible e.g., air, water, grazing land, e.g. National defense,
oceans, fisheries, wildlife, etc public parks, etc.
c) Externalities: decisions and actions made in the market
exchange that affect other parties (negatively or positively).
 Negative externalities:
 occur when an activity of one individual or firm imposes
uncompensated costs on others.
 The most common examples are air and water pollution.
 The discharge of wastes and the factories’ chemical diffusion
impose costs to others.
 Positive externalities: the third party gains some thing from the
two parties interaction. Eg. Higher education

d) Information failure:
 Lack of complete information about a product or a
service causes market failure. Therefore, there

should be a policy that allow the government to
respond for these actions either by regulating the
activities that produces externalities or imposing
penalties( fines) on the activities to compensate
their cost to society.
Public Institutions and Policy Capacity
Systems of governance and the way public institutions are structured
affect their policy capacity or ability to identify, analyze, and respond to

public problems.
When: governance is divided at central, state or local levels; there is
separation of power; there are diverse interests in the society, public

policymaking task is complex.
Policy capacity variation among different structures affects the quality
of policy formulation and implementation. While decentralization of

power to the states has got positive implications for program
effectiveness, efficiency, and equity can be obtained as a result.
Public Institutions and Policy Capacity Cont…
 Those who favor increasing state authority tend to believe that
the states are capable of handling additional responsibilities and
are better equipped than the federal government at defining their
citizens’ needs. For some, the states are the “new heroes” of
federalism, with greater capacity for policy innovation and
closer ties to citizens than a national government in which many
have lost faith (Kraft and Furlong 2004, 40).

Public Opinion and policymaking
In democracy, public opinion is a major force in policy making.
It influences what elected officials try to do or issues that are of
great importance to voters.
Public, particularly attentive public thinks about a particular
issue or set of issues at any point in time. So, the views of the
attentive public are an organized interest which tends to have
greater impact and influence than the general public’s
opinions which only shape the overall direction the policy.

Public Opinion and policy making Cont…
So, beyond answering polls or surveys, people can express
their opinions through their political participation that
includes not only voting, but attending meetings, writing, or
speaking officials, joining interest groups, and backing
referendums and initiatives placed on state or local ballots.
Governments may also apply information disclosure
policies (Graham 2002; Hadden 1989).

Cont…
Group work
Explain political and economic rationales for Ethiopian

government intervention via public policy. (attempt to brief
practical reasons for its intervention or basic functions of
government )
 Please read this material ahead of carrying your group-work out.

(Hughes, Owen E. (1998) , Public Management and Administration:
An introduction ,2nd edition, MacMillan Press Ltd )
105
END OF THE CHAPTER
Thank You

Unit 1 & 2 Final - PPT (PPS)

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Unit 1 & 2 Final - PPT (PPS)

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Module: Public Policy Formulation and

Instructor : Desta Mulugeta (MPM,MA)

 Wu,et,al.,(2010),The Public Policy Primer :Managing the policy process,

Public Policy : Concepts and

 Explain the underlying reasons for policy to be in place; and

 Understand the role of citizens in the policy process

Understand origin of public policy

Differentiate what make Policy, public policy

 Policy is made or initiated by government.

 Policy is interpreted by public and private actors.

 Policy is what the government intends to do.

 Policy is also what the government chooses not to do (Birkland

with its citizens (Anderson, 2006, 80).

 It is “the actions of government and the intentions that

activities, whether acting directly or through agents, as it has an

actor or group of actors concerning the selection of goals and

actions to deal with social problems, whose

Or widely accepted and publicly visible patterns of behavior

self-interest. i.e. while available resources are limited, human

to choose among the goods and services produced in certain

some goods and services to be in the interest of the public.

1. Responses to policy demands-some sort of problem that requires

2. Goal and result oriented, to achieve long-term purpose

3. Public policy is based on law and is authoritative.

4. Without enforcement, a policy loses its meaning.

5. Policy is ultimately made by government

6. Policy is also what government chooses to do or not to do

 PP is set of decisions and is breeder concept than the applied

 Public policies are the domain of state or Gov’t

 Policy formulation is the duty of politicians

 Public policies result from three flows – problems, solutions and

the public policy agenda, and those that are not

the public policy agenda when it meets one or more of three

• Policy response to public issues/agenda can be reactive or

 The two concepts involved in any policy that need to be

decisions and statements (taxes collected, highways built, welfare

everywhere and we face many advantages and disadvantages,

for their well-being and happiness (Anderson 2006, 1).

food and administering drugs.

resolves questions of personal welfare.

military to keep us safe from attack.

government regulations and standards to which we must adhere in

 organize society to carry on conflicts with other societies;

 distribute a great variety of symbolic rewards and material services

to members of the society; and

extract taxes-or all of these at once.

Governance (Good Governance).

 PP study helps citizens, interest groups, individuals in their

conscious political participation and making of their choices.

 It sharpens citizens’ analytic skills in order to decide what political

positions and policies to support, to evaluate the extent of democracy

and good governance, develop the ability to influence policy

failure to comply with them exposes to unlikely consequences.

decisions and choices.

 structure of political parties,

 their group interests,

 the electoral systems and

 the executive-legislative relations.

 general understanding of the public,

 causes and consequences of public policy vis-à-vis-in relation to

what governments ought to do.

policies, i.e. how they are budgeted, implemented, and evaluated.

aspirations of all groups to come to policy formulation.